Monthly Archives: September 2017

If there’s one thing we’ve learned in all our travels to the Carova area of the Outer Banks of North Carolina, it is that the beach is different each time.

Sometimes the sand is so smooth, it feels as though we’re driving on the interstate. Other times, the ride is so rough, it “rattles our fillings”. The width of the beach depends, of course, on the tide.

In this picture, taken last month, you can see the cottage named “Laughing Gull” in the distance. It’s the one nearest the ocean. You can tell that the beach is wide enough for vehicles to park in the middle, and there’s room on the dune side as well as the ocean side for at least two lanes of traffic to pass. The little boy is walking across what is considered to be the highway.

On our most recent trip to the beach (last week), the beach showed the effects of a tropical storm off the coast. There was barely enough room between the cottage and the tide for one lane of traffic. In all honesty, normally, the beach in front of Laughing Gull isn’t quite as wide as it is in the area where I took the previous picture. But, usually, there’s plenty of room for two lanes of traffic between the cottage and the ocean.

The horses aren’t bothered by a storm off the coast. The rough surf just makes for a pretty background for photos.

And on a lighter note, can you imagine stepping outside your door to find a horse under your car port?

So the condition of the beach isn’t the only thing that changes with each trip: we also never know where we’ll spot a horse.

Yesterday, Motor Man learned that it was National Love Note Day. When he came home, I was at the opposite end of the house. He “ducked” into the kitchen, then called to me that the ducks were outside and demanding to be fed.

I walked by the kitchen without looking in and went out to the garage. This is what I saw:

As I turned to come back inside, I saw this on the interior door:

On the refrigerator door in the kitchen:

This was on the computer monitor:

On my pillow:

And on my bathroom mirror:

In the meantime, I had heard that it was National Pancake Day, so we headed to Cracker Barrel for yummy Pumpkin Spice Pancakes. (We shared.)

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Today is my blogging anniversary. Seven years ago today, I published my first post.

In my previous anniversary posts, I’ve shared how much blogging has meant to me, the friends I’ve made through blogging, the bloggers I’ve been fortunate enough to meet in person, and the struggle with blog topics. Blogging has even introduced me to very distant relatives.

So here are my blog’s stats to date:

I have published 1,748 posts
My blog has 1,033 followers
There have been 330,425 views of my posts
Readers have left 31,641 comments (thank you)

As in the past, I’m thankful to Motor Man for putting up with this time-consuming hobby of mine, and to both he and Marshall for reading every post and alerting me to possible blogging opportunities.

And to all of you who stop to visit and read my posts.

Now, who’s ready for more adventures with family and friends, and pictures of kitties, deer, ducks, sunrises, sunsets, wild horses and beach trips?

We sure are!!

~These Days Of Mine~

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This was an incredibly sad weekend. Saturday, we learned that the husband of a dear friend suddenly passed away the night before. Later that day, news came that the mother of one of Marshall’s classmates lost her battle with cancer. Motor Man heard that the wife of one of his racing acquaintances passed away from a health issue.

And yesterday afternoon….. I received the call that Eddie, my oldest nephew, born when I was just two-and-a-half, had died of natural causes.

When Eddie was born, my sister, June, and her husband lived in Syracuse, New York. While researching old photos for this post, I discovered one that I’d never seen before. It was on a thumb drive of files from June’s computer. I’m guessing this is Eddie as a newborn. (It could possibly be his brother, John, born just ten months after Eddie. But the parents sure have that “smitten with our first baby” look.)

Soon after that, June and her family moved to our area, and it was then that Eddie and I became like sister and brother. They lived in our little town so we visited quite often.

A few years later, June and her family (which by then included Eddie’s siblings, John, Donna and Barb) moved several miles away. So we didn’t see each other quite as often, but we still had frequent family visits.

That’s Eddie,standing by his mom

We celebrated birthdays, Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and often just visited for no reason.

Sometimes for my school recess or PE, we’d be required to play softball. I was taunted (and always the last one chosen for a team) because I could never hit the ball. On weekends, Eddie would try to help me. Neither of us had a ball and bat, so we used a stick and black walnuts to practice. Surprisingly, I managed to connect with those black walnuts much more often than I ever did a softball. Perhaps it was who was pitching to me?

Many summer afternoons, we watched Dark Shadows and were scared terrified together.

In our adult years, we saw each other less often, so those family gatherings were even more special. This was taken during a Christmas visit from Eddie when Marshall was six months old. My sister, June (Eddie’s mom) is to the right.

At a more recent family gathering in our yard a few summers ago, Eddie is obviously enjoying time with his nephew, Ray.

And that’s how I shall remember “my little brother”….relaxing, smiling and happy.

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1,) On Labor Day, Motor Man and I drove our little yellow ’32 (Vicky) to a nearby 50’s-type drive-in for lunch. On the way, we passed the War Memorial Museum in Newport News and took a little drive around the premises. Motor Man commented that our car is older than those tanks. It’s certainly brighter…

2.) The butterflies continue to enjoy my zinnias. And I continue to enjoy the butterflies.

3.) Earlier this summer, I rescued this hibiscus from the “orphanage” at Lowe’s. I do believe it’s happy here in its new home. Since the deer find hibiscus yummy, I’m planning to bring it in for the winter and hope it survives for next year.

4.) A sunrise from a couple of weeks ago. It almost looks as though that one area is being spotlighted.

5.) My friend, Bev, asked if she could come to our house last night to have me help her with something on the computer. She and her daughter, Lacey, enjoy painting rocks and leaving them in public places as inspiration for others. So Bev asked Lacey to paint a rock for me in appreciation for my help. I love it.